Squidoo

What is Squidoo?

Squidoo is a commercial web 2.0 platform, which basically means that the content on Squidoo (which are referred to as a squidoo lenses), is user generated by folks just like you and I (we are called lensmasters).

Squidoo is the brain child of Seth Godin, click on his name if you want to find out more about him. Oh and before I forget I have to tell you that Squidoo is free to join too.

Squidoo launched it’s website back in October 2005 and the platform is designed to make it really easy for anyone to share information and news on topics they care or are passionate about.

So how popular is Squidoo?

Very … the number of Squidoo lenses after 6 months of the site being launched were over 100,000, and by 2010 Squidoo lensmasters had built over 1,500,000 (that’s 1.5 million) lenses!

Why Use Squidoo?

The beauty of creating a webpage with Squidoo is that you don’t need any HTML or formal website building skills at all. In fact, Squidoo is so easy to get the hang of that after building your first lens you’re practically an expert!

It’s almost as easy as using MS Word, and although you may have heard that term about other programs, believe me when I say that with Squidoo it really is simple. The finished product is a sweet looking multimedia page that looks like a web design professional put it together.

Squidoo also has a good reputation with Google, and this means that if you build a lens around your keywords you are more than likely to get that lens ranked pretty quickly in the search engine results.

Squidoo is also a great platform for Internet marketers who want to test a new niche…after all, It’s always a smart move to dip your toe in the water to see if it’s hot – right? Many marketers use free web 2.0 platforms like Squidoo to see if the research they have done is solid.

The back office in Squidoo lets you track how many people visited your site on a daily or weekly basis, where they came from, and most importantly, what search phrase you are being found for.

This type of info can be a great time saver because there is nothing worse than building a website and you actually don’t get any visitors from the search engines for you keywords. Umm I suppose that’s why Internet marketers always bang on about getting the research stage right!

If you already know how to build websites with programs like WordPress, it’s a very smart move to link your Squidoo lens to your main website just because of the extra traffic you will attract.

Just imagine this for a moment…you want to target 10 different keywords on your main website, so building 10 Squidoo lenses, with each lens focused on just 1 of the 10 keywords, your lens ranks well in the search results for your keyword and all 10 lenses point to your main website. That’s a lot of extra visitors coming to your website!

A Few WFHW Squidoo Tips

Titles – Squidoo uses H1 font for the titles of their modules, so make sure that you get your chosen keyword phrases in the module titles. This is a great SEO benefit and I have witnessed brand new websites get indexed within hours of getting a new backlink from Squidoo.

Modules – Squidoo uses a very simple stacking box module system, sounds a bit crazy but it is as simple as it gets. There are 100’s of modules to choose from, video, text, pictures, cafe-press, you name it you’ll find it! The modules are really what make the whole lens building process such a breeze and give a fantastic look to your finished lens.

Your Bio – Create a separate bio for your Squidoo lenses, include a click-able picture at the top – this works like gangbusters for getting a click through to your website.

Tag it – Squidoo tags are like little extra keywords and phrases that you want your lens to be found for. Squidoo only asks for 3 or 4 to start your new lens, however you can add 40 tags to a lens which results in a lot more find-a-bility.

Revenue share – There are plenty of ways that you can earn money with your new Squidoo lens. There’s adverts share, Amazon or cafe-press modules, plus on Squidoo you can also add affiliate links. However the subject matter is closely scrutinised, so no lenses on ‘get your ex back’ or Forex! Check your user profile and you can sort out your revenue share details there.

What Is Squidoo – the summary

Squidoo is a great place to start if you haven’t yet built a website. There are many online entrepreneurs who still use Squidoo today as it has so many great benefits. Business owners are learning how to use sites like Squidoo to boost business and attract more customers for free rather than the usual old school ways that are less effective.

Squidoo is fun and anyone can use it to build a quality multi media page in minutes, not hours. I bet that once you try Squidoo you’ll be spreading the word when folks ask “What is Squidoo?”

Is Squidoo a good business model for working from home? Well I’d have to say yes, but only if your looking for a little extra pocket money. I’d say the majority of your online income will come from your own self hosted website, but maybe this could be an ideal opportunity if you are new to working online.

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Hi! I'm Marcus, founder of Work From Home Watchdog.

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